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Friday, May 1, 2015

Happy Beltane

It's May 1st, Beltane - and I honestly cant think of a more glorious day to be taking thetime to write for the Mind Body Spirit Odyssey! In the Northeast we've had a brutal winter, and it's still quite cold in places.

Today though, the four Bradford Pears that are in our back yard are in full bloom along with the daffodils and tulips. And my little wren friend has returned and isresting comfortably on my back porch. His way of gentle way of reminding me that the birdbaths need to be refilled.

The yearly, local plant sale in our town starts today and runs throughout the weekend. We plan to attend with our neighbors to purchase a new tree or bush to plant in a space that adjoins our properties. We're also hoping to select some heirloom vegetables and flowers for the garden.

I can't think of a nicer way to enjoy this blessing of a day!

Below is an excerpt from a post written about Beltane by Nellie Levine and published in our blog in 2009. Whatever you happen to be doing and wherever you may be, we hope you smile and enjoy your day!

It
seems that everyone I talk to is impatient for warm and sunny days,
tired of the cloud cover and chill air of the darker half of the year.
I'm certainly ready to celebrate the green growth of spring! This desire
to feel sun on our skin and soil beneath our fingernails makes Beltane -
or May Day as it is generally practiced today - such a comfortable,
accessible holiday. May Day is widely and openly celebrated through the
British Isles, as well as in many places in the US. People dance around
the May Pole, sit by bonfires, and gladly toss their winter worries away
as they look ahead to brighter days. Dreams come back to life, as we
draw upon the fertile energy of the day.

Traditionally,
Beltane was celebrated by the Celts with much dancing, drinking, music,
merriment, and romance. It was one of the two most important of their
celebrations - celebrating the light half of the year. The name Beltane
is believed to mean "fires of Bel" and honors the ancient sun god Beli,
or Belanus. Druids looked after the Beltane fires, by which people and
their livestock would pass, with the belief that they would be cleansing
themselves of the illness or misfortunes they may have experienced
through winter, and perhaps blessing them with good fortune for the
months to come.

We
can light our own bonfires, and we can honor any deity we like... We
can make a May Pole or just make some music... what I think is important
if we are to celebrate Beltane today is that essential message of
taking a deep breath of fresh spring air, embracing the renewed life of
warmer seasons, purifying ourselves of our past troubles, and looking
with openness to the growth ahead.

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The purpose of The Mind Body Spirit Odyssey is to showcase quality writing, ideas & products that are designed to nurture, inspire, heal & honor the spirit inside all of us. This blog is positive in nature & non-denominational. We publish a variety of diverse opinions, beliefs & viewpoints on many different subjects related to the Mind Body Spirit theme.

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